If you are like most people, you do cardio to burn fat and improve endurance. Of course, weight training is essential, but you don’t have a well-balanced fitness routine without including cardio as well.
With cardio, the goal is to increase your heart rate and sweat – to the point where you are breathing heavily during the workout. A general recommendation is that most people should prioritize 100 to 300 minutes of cardio per week, depending on your fitness goals and the intensity of the workouts.
The key to cardio success is to focus on intensity and prioritize consistency. The higher intensity your workouts are, the more calories you burn. As a result, you will see fat loss over time.
Burn Fat with These Cardio Exercises
You can lose weight faster and see results sooner by making cardio part of your regular fitness routine. Here are a few options to consider:
- Running: Pounding the pavement is the first thing that comes to mind for most people when talking about cardio. Try running outside for fresh air. Or use a treadmill at the gym.
- Elliptical: If running is too hard on your knees, hips, and ankles, then an elliptical machine is a great alternative. This low-impact exercise helps you burn calories while minimizing the beating on your joints.
- Swimming: Another great way to alleviate pressure on the joints is to get in the water. Swimming offers a total-body workout. Switch up your routine by swimming laps with different strokes.
- Cycling: Join a cycling class at the gym for the best cardio results. For these machines to be effective, you must increase the intensity and maintain a vigorous pace.
- Jumping Rope: You can burn the fat with a low-cost piece of equipment. Jumping rope is great for calorie burning, and it also improves coordination, shoulder strength, and footwork.
- Stair Climber: The action of stepping up engages the leg muscles more than running or walking, helping with functional strength while you are also working on cardio. Make sure to maintain good form to avoid unnecessary wear and tear on your knees.
- HIIT: High-Intensity Interval Training (HIIT) is a workout that focuses on high-intensity bursts with short recovery periods between intervals. These classes are vigorous, helping you burn a lot of calories in a short amount of time.
Most successful athletes benefit by using a variety of cardio workouts. Switching things up helps you avoid boredom, plus you can cross-train to work the muscles in different ways. For more information about effective weight loss and muscle-building strategies, join our tribe at Club Evexia. We offer a modern fitness facility and fun classes for people of all ages: (415) 238-0029.
